Thunderstorms and lightning have wrought havoc in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh over the past two days, claiming 110 lives, leaving at least 32 injured and causing widespread damage to property, officials in the two states said on Thursday.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday expressed condolences to families of those who lost their lives due to heavy rain and lightning in parts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
"I`ve received tragic news about death of many people due to heavy rain and lightning in some districts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. The state governments are engaged in relief work with promptness. I express my condolences to the families of those who have lost their lives in this disaster," the Prime Minister tweeted.
Expressing grief over the deaths, the two chief ministers announced a payment of Rs 4 lakh as ex gratia to the next of kin of each deceased in their respective states.
At least 83 people died due to thunderstorms in Bihar in the last 24 hours, according to the chief minister’s office.
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar appealed to the people of the state to remain alert and stay indoors as far as possible during bad weather conditions. He also asked them to follow advisories issued by the Disaster Management Department in this regard.
Meanwhile, it killed 24 people while 12 were injured in the different parts of Uttar Pradesh.
Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath also expressed his condolences and announced financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh each to the families of the deceased.
Yogi Adityanath also directed officials to provide best healthcare facilities to those injured.
Meanwhile, the weather department in Patna has forecast that inclement weather could persist for some more days.
An IMD release said thunderstorms are likely to lash all the 38 districts of the state over the next few days along with "heavy to very heavy rainfall" in the northern, flood-prone districts, bordering Nepal.
The Met department in Lucknow has forecast heavy rain at isolated places over east UP on June 26.